In a big boost for Malaysian golf, Khavish Varadan has been crowned the Asian Development Tour (ADT) Order of Merit champion earlier than expected after it was confirmed today that the season-ending Aramco Invitational Tournament has been postponed.

The 26-year-old and his fellow ADT members were due to head to Saudi Arabia next month for what was the last remaining event of the season but instability in the region and concerns over player safety have forced its organisers to not proceed with it on the ADT schedule. It was due to be held at Rolling Hills Golf Club from 25-28 November.

It means Varadan wins the Merit list for the first time and becomes only the third Malaysian to do so in the 16-year history of the ADT. His compatriots S. Siva Chandhran and Nicholas Fung won the OOM in 2010 and in 2013 respectively.

Varadan has taken the ADT by storm this year in just his third full season as a professional. He lost the season-opening Selangor Masters in a play-off in February to Singapore’s Nicklaus Chiam. However, he made amends by winning the next event, the Nam A Bank Vietnam Masters, after another play-off – against Jazz Janewattananond from Thailand. He also claimed tied second place in the Ciputra Golfpreneur Tournament later in the year and enjoyed two other top five results.

The Malaysian, who is also playing on the Asian Tour this year having made it through Qualifying School, finished the year with earnings of US$64,883.89 having played in eight of the 14 events on the schedule.

Today’s news will also be welcomed by the other players in the top-10 of the OOM, who have all earned Asian Tour cards for next year: Korean Minhyeok Yang, Sean Ramos from the Philippines, Italian Michele Ortolani, Thailand’s Runchanapong Youprayong, Indian Pukhraj Gill, Nicklaus Chiam of Singapore, Xu, Andi from China, Indonesia’s Kevin Akbar, and Nathan Han from the United States.

The Egypt Golf Series 14, won by Englishman Ben Jones at the beginning of the month, now stands as the final event of the 2026 ADT’s season.